Reason to Care
by XxYesterdayTodayTomorrowxX
Summary: Does one have to have a reason to care? Zeus certainly doesn't think so. And that's exactly what he tells his daughter when he found out she was bullied. Slight Thalico, cause I can't help it. T just in case. One-shot.


**Hey guys! It's me again... **

**I really find the concept of demigods getting bullied at school very interesting. So I'm probably gonna write two or three. NO OFFENSE TO YOU AWESOME DEMIGODS!**

**This contains SLIGHT Thalico, cause I can't help it. Love em to death! Don't like it, hike it. I don't want flames cause you don't like the pairing.**

**I have nothing more to say... Oh yeah. HAPPY MARCH BREAK PEEPS!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own PJO, HoO, or Greek mythology. Sadly... *sigh***

**ENJOY!**

* * *

_Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to leave the Hunters_, Thalia thought.

"Hey, Grace! Waiting for your mommy? Oh, wait. You don't have one!" Clara, one of her bullies jeered.

Thalia didn't even fight back anymore. Ever since she started going to school again as per her father's requests, she has been bullied non-stop. She doesn't even know what she's ever done to them.

But today, it was different. She wanted to fight back. Just for today, though.

"No, actually. I'm waiting for my brother. If you haven't noticed, I've been going home with him since the beginning of the year," Thalia said bluntly.

"Awww, wittle Thally has to go home with her bwother because she doesn't have a car!" Clara mocked in a babyish voice. She high-fived her best friend Ashley.

Thalia actually did have a car. She just never takes it because it was a nice car, as it was a gift from the gods, and she didn't want to be viewed as some snotty rich brat.

"Let's go, Ash. She's not worth our time. We don't stay too long around lowly beings," Clara said.

For a moment, Thalia thought she saw Ashley shoot her an apologetic look. Or maybe that was just her.

"Thals? Come on!" Apollo screamed from his sun chariot (In the form of a red Maserati).

Slowly, Thalia stood up and walked in, slamming the door. She squeezed her eyes shut.

"Whoa, what's up, sis? Why the long face?" Apollo asked, curious.

"None of your business. Shut up and drive while I try not to puke," Thalia snapped.

* * *

It got worse. Just as she thought the bullying finally stopped when she fought back that time, because she didn't get any taunts for a couple of days, it got worse.

"Ooops!" Clara said in a sing-song voice, intentionally spilling her juice on Thalia's head.

Thalia growled behind her throat. She closed her eyes and stood up, dumping her lunch in the trash bin before walking out of the cafeteria.

Unfortunately, Clara decided to throw in one more blow.

"Decided to take a milk bath, Grace?!" she yelled.

All the heads in the room swiveled towards her. Everyone started pointing and snickering and her. Thalia forced the tears back down. She was Thalia Grace. Daughter of Zeus, heroine of Olympus, former lieutenant of Artemis. She won't cry in front of these mortals. She was strong. Or was she?

* * *

"Have you ever thought of what would have happened if nobody could see you, Grace?" Clara asked when Thalia was taking her books from her locker.

"I mean, why not? You're ugly, you're stupid, you have no friends. No one would care, right?" Clara sneered. She made Thalia's books fall over with shove.

Silently, Thalia bent down to pick up her books. But before she could do that, Clara and Ashley pushed her into her locker, slammed the door, and locked it.

Thalia heard laughing from the outside. And then a strict voice reprimanded the girls.

"Shame on you! Locking in a fellow student! Detention to both of you!" a teacher scolded. "What do you have to say for yourselves?"

"We won't do it again," Clara grumbled.

"Now stay here while I get Mr. Gundy."

_Oh, thank the gods!_ Thalia thought.

A few minutes later, she heard the sound of a lock being cut, and the door swung open.

In front of her stood Mr. Gundy the janitor, and Ms. Santiago, the music teacher. She had always been one of the nicer teachers.

Wordlessly, she walked out and went to her last class.

She choked her tears back down.

* * *

At the end of the day, Thalia ran into her cabin at Camp, slammed the door, and locked it. Jason was at the Roman camp this month. She would be alone.

She sat down at the feet of her father's imposing statue, twirling a bronze dagger in her hand. Should she?

"Thalia!" she heard from outside her cabin. "Thalia! Open the door!"

Maybe she shouldn't do it. She had her friends at Camp. She had Nico. They would care, right?

"Thalia! It's me, Nico! Open the door!"

But she couldn't take it anymore. She pressed the dagger on her arm and cut away.

"Thalia! Please open the door!"

"Thals! Let me in!"

"Thalia! Answer me!"

"Thalia! Please!"

Nico's pleas were the only thing she heard before she saw black.

* * *

"Oh, Iris, goddess of the rainbow, accept my offering. Show me Lord Zeus on Olympus," Nico chanted. He knew that Zeus was going to kill him for doing this, but he hoped that he would forgive him. Because this was about Thalia.

"Lord Zeus!" Nico greeted once the image of Zeus picking throught his ties was shown on the screen.

"What do you want, boy?" Zeus snapped, annoyed. "It's bad enough that you started dating my daughter."

"It's Thalia—" Nico started.

"You better have been treating her well!" Zeus exclaimed. "Or so help me, I will fry you!"

"Yes, sir! I have! It's just that..." Nico trailed off.

"Now, go on, boy! I don't have all day!"

"She has been in her cabin since she came back from school. The door's locked and I can't get her to open it no matter how hard I try," Nico said.

"And why are you calling me?" Zeus asked, annoyed. "Can't you call Chiron or my idiotic son Dionysus to get her out?"

"_Please throw in another Drachma for an extra five minutes_," a woman's voice came from the rainbow.

Nico dug around in his pockets but Zeus beat him to it. The god of the skies tossed in another coin into the mist.

"I can feel her life force seeping out, my lord. She's dying," Nico said in a small voice.

Zeus' eyes widened. "I'll be right there!" he exclaimed, cutting the connection.

* * *

Zeus flashed into his daughter's cabin and saw her lying by his feet, well, his statue's feet, in a puddle of gold tinted blood.

"Apollo! Get here now!" Zeus called telepathically. It was a talent he perfected a couple years ago with the help of Athena.

"Lord Zeus? Are you in there? Please let me in!" the son of Hades called from outside.

Zeus waved his hand and unlocked the door. The dark teenager burst in and gasped when he saw his girlfriend's body.

"Oh, my gods! Thalia!" he exclaimed, kneeling next to her, getting her blood all over him.

He took her hand and pressed his forehead to hers, not caring if her child of Hades hating father was watching.

"She's still alive," Nico mumbled.

"Thank gods," Zeus breathed.

"I'm here! What—Thalia!" Apollo screamed, rushing into the cabin.

He knelt on Thalia's other side, muttering incantations and performing healing rites.

"Just give her a dose of ambrosia and she'll be fine," Apollo said.

"Thank you, Apollo," Zeus said, relieved.

"Anytime!" the sun god said cheerfully before walking out.

* * *

Thalia gasped and opened her eyes, the two men beside her sighing in utter relief.

"I went a little too far, didn't I?" Thalia said once she sat up.

Nico engulfed her in a hug.

"What were you thinking, Thals?! I could feel you dying!" Nico exclaimed.

"Well, I'm not dead, so don't worry," Thalia said, waving it off.

"Do you know how worried I was? If you died, there would be yet another person I love who left me!" Nico told her lowly.

Thalia's eyes widened. "You... love me?"

"How can you even question that? Yes, I love you, Thalia Grace!"

Zeus cleared his throat and the couple sprang apart, blushing.

"How are you, daughter?" Zeus asked.

"Why do you care? You never have!" Thalia snapped.

"Do I have to have a reason to care? You are my daughter, Thalia, and I love you," Zeus said firmly.

"And so do Percy, Annabeth, and all of us here in Camp Half-Blood. And don't forget Jason," Nico added.

"For once, I agree with the death spawn. As much as it hurts to say that," Zeus said.

"Now, tell us what's wrong," Nico said.

"Well... I was bullied."

"WHAT?!"

* * *

The reason Zeus picked this particular school for Thalia, is because the principal was a son of Athena. It was easier to complain because he knew he would be respected. And today was one of those days.

"Lord Zeus! What brings you here?"

"My daughter, Thalia Grace, goes to this school, and she's been bullied," Zeus said.

"I'm sorry, my lord. I can't do anything without solid proof," the man said, shaking his head.

"Solid proof? _Solid proof?!_ My daughter almost killed herself!" Zeus yelled.

"I'm sorry, sir. I can't do anything about it."

"Alright. I'll give you solid proof," Zeus growled. He produced a rainbow, tossed a Drachma inside, and called, "Iris, it's Zeus. Please show me Thalia when I came in her cabin earlier today."

The screen showed a dark-haired girl on the floor, a puddle of blood surrounding her, a dagger gripped tight in her hand.

"Proof enough for you?" the king of the gods hissed.

The man behing the desk nodded slowly and asked, "No offense, my lord, but why didn't she fight back? I mean, she is your daughter."

Zeus looked sheepish. "Because I made her swear on the river Styx not to pick any fights. I really should not have," he mumbled.

The principal called the two girls into his office the next day and suspended them for three weeks.

* * *

"Again, why do you care?" Thalia asked, softer than before.

"I told you, Thalia. I don't have to have a reason to care."

* * *

**This came out not as good as I expected. Oh well...**

**Please review! They make me smile!**

**Until next time! **

**~XxYesterdayTodayTomorrowxX**


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